After high court ruling, is it tremors or earthquakes for public education?

Public education is navigating enrollment declines, shaky parental trust, and sizable learning losses. This week the U.S. Supreme Court added another factor to the rocky educational landscape: a ruling that permits more public funding to flow to religious schools. 

Though not as high-profile as gun and abortion cases decided by the justices this term, Tuesday’s ruling in Carson v. Makin could significantly impact schooling in the United States over time.

Some believe the very nature of secular public education is in play, and that’s causing both excitement and consternation. Effects of the decision could range from more families opting out of local schools, to more tax dollars being spent on religious education, to public schooling and a growing list of alternatives continuing to delicately coexist.

“This [case] already is a rallying cry for folks interested in defending public education and the value of public